Jamie's Adventures In The Pacific Northwest

We took a badly needed trip to Arizona last week.  We were supposed to go to Cancun with the whole mishpucha but due to the Swine Flu outbreak, we had to change our destination.  Mexico would have been great and we were really looking forward to taking Jamie to the ocean but the heat and pool in Scottsdale were just as fantastic.

Jamie’s FAVORITE part of the trip was the pool.  Since we’ve been home, he keeps pointing to go outside and looking for the pool once outside.

When Jamie and I are out and about, people tend to do a double take when they see his light hair and blue eyes.   I’ve been asked if I’m his nanny or if his dad is blonde.  After some friendly banter explaining how there are many blondes and red heads in both Matt and I’s families, the next question is usually “who does he look like?”  I’ve always said he’s a good mix of Matt and I.  That he has Matt’s eyes but my chin and mouth.

During Jamie’s birthday weekend, Matt’s step-grandma Ileene mentioned over and over that she thinks Jamie looks like my dad.  I was a little surprised to hear this, I’m not sure why.  I think I look like both my parents - if I’m standing next to my dad, people say I look just like him; if I’m with my mom, then people think I look just like her so why shouldn’t my son look like my dad? 

A few days ago, I was getting ready to order some picture prints from our trip to Mexico and came across this picture…

Look familiar? No, it’s not a picture of Jamie’s new hair style…it’s my dad at about a year old.  This picture was hanging in my grandparents house which we visited in November…it’s probably one of the only baby pictures I’ve ever seen of my dad.

In case there is any doubt that Jamie is my son, check out these pictures from Matt and I’s respective first birthdays.

Jamie’s Birth Day 5 lbs, 6 oz		One Month Old the beginning of his monkey nickname
		Three Months Old chillin’ on the couch
Two Months Old enjoying some warm weather
Four Months Old discovering his fingers
		Five Months Old tummy time on the ball
		Seven Months Old electronics!
Six Months Old sitting all by himself
Eight Months Old first snow		Nine Months Old teething
Ten Months Old practicing standing		Eleven Months Old so happy!

Happy 1st Birthday Big Boy!

I’ve been struggling with writing this post for over a week now.  One of Matt’s classmates’ from USC’s daughter died unexpectedly last week and my heart has been heavy and broken since reading the news.

Madeline Alice Spohr died last Tuesday, April 7th. She was only 17 months old.  Though I never had the joy of meeting Maddie, and as crazy as this sounds, I feel like I knew her and think she and Jamie would have been great friends.

Maddie’s story is truly amazing.  Maddie’s mom, Heather was in two car accidents very early in her pregnancy and spent the majority of her pregnancy on bed rest in the hospital.  Maddie was born at 29 weeks (nearly three months early) and fought beyond belief to gain enough weight and lung function to be able to go home.  Since being home, she had been in and out of the hospital countless times yet still growing and thriving.  Last weekend she developed a cough and by Tuesday was gone.  

Maddie’s mom Heather is a very talented writer and chronicled her entire pregnancy and motherhood experience on her blog.  We were pregnant at the same time and I “checked- in” on her progress almost daily; once Maddie arrived, I was on her site at least once a day wanting to know how Maddie was thriving and about her latest adventures. Thru her blog, Heather has reached thousands of parents of preemies giving them hope and writing hilariously about parenting in general.  Most mornings I can count on Heather to either make me laugh or cry. 

Since Maddie’s passing, it is amazing how the blogosphere has reached out to support Heather, her husband Mike and the rest of their family and friends.  I reached out to the two restaurants I used to work at and asked them to donate food and beverage for the post-funeral reception.  Unfortunately, do to the economy they were unable to assist. I keep trying to figure out how to help, how to do my part and make sure Maddie isn’t forgotten, that her legacy lives on.  Today, I saw a link to Kristen Salisbury Gunther’s blog.  She and her friend Kellee did the most beautiful thing in Maddie’s honor and think it is the perfect tribute.  Very long story short, a few weeks back Heather posted a list of items that the parents of children in the NICU need.  Kristen and Kellee took that list, went shopping and then anonymously dropped off those items at their local NICU along with some food for the NICU staff.  The items aren’t expensive, are very simple, and easy to procure.  Next week, after the hoopla of Jamie’s birthday passes, I’m going shopping then heading over to Evergreen’s NICU hoping to make some parents’ day a little brighter.

Every little bit that we do makes a difference.  If heading to your local NICU isn’t for you, please consider making a donation to the March of Dimes or check out this list from A Mom Two Boys.  At the very least, turn your blog purple…

This blog is all about Jamie, with a little bit of Einstein sprinkled in. But, every now and then I need to take a moment for myself.  As with all moms, I’m not very good at taking time for myself so when I do, as I have consistently for the last 30 days, I need to take a second and pat myself on the back.

A little over a month ago, Kristen Chase, one of my favorite bloggers, started Jillian Michaels’ 30 Day Shred Program.  Kristen is not only a mom to three kiddos, all under 5, but she also works full time from home and her husband travels often.  Intrigued by her experience, I decided to look into the program and see if it is something that would work for me. 

My favorite forms of exercise, other than walking the dog park, are to practice yoga or Pilates, both of which can be very expensive, time consuming and require either a gym membership or a studio to attend.  I’ve tried to do yoga and Pilates DVDs but get bored VERY quickly.  Part of what I enjoy about both disciplines is how they require you to pay close attention to the instructor to the point where you can’t let your mind wander and think about what is going on in life.  Well with a DVD, it’s the same series over and over again, by day three or four I know what’s coming next and my mind starts to wander.  Not to mention, what new mom has time for a 90 minute Power Yoga DVD?

Kristen kept going on and on how this 20 minute program was actually making her sore and how she saw/felt almost immediate results.  20 minutes I asked myself, can I find 20 minutes in my day to do something my body (and soul) badly needs?  Although the program is currently available thru On-Demand with our FIOS TV provider, I decided to order the DVD on Netflix. I figured it was worth a shot, if I got bored then I could just return it, no big deal - at least I’d have gotten a little more exercise in than in the last 11 months.  To my surprise, I liked the workout routine and I love the way I feel after working out.  I’d completely forgotten about the post-exercise high endorphins give.

30 Day Shred is a three level program that requires no exercise equipment other than some hand weights.  Because I don’t own any and didn’t feel like making the investment in case the DVD sucked, I opted for using water bottles instead.  While they don’t quite weigh as much as the 3 pound weights Jillian suggests, they still get the job done.  In each 10 day series, there are two variations on each exercise performed so you can adjust to your current abilities. 

To keep myself motivated, I posted on Facebook what day of the program I was on and joined the online community that Kristen created.  It is amazing how having a community of people doing the same program you are and friends keeping tabs on your progress keeps you going.  Although the routines have re-awakened old nagging joint pain in my right wrist and ankles, I kept going everyday for THIRTY DAYS!  Well ok, actually 32 because I took two days off during our anniversary trip but still…

Jillian Michaels’ is one crazy bitch but as she says over and over again, it’s only 20 minutes and before you know it you’re done.  I’m shocked at how quickly a month passed and am pleased with the results. The scale doesn’t show a dramatic change but my clothes definitely fit better and I have significant muscle definition that I didn’t have before.

The big questions is, what am I going to do for myself next? Now that I’ve made it thru a 30 day exercise program, I really want to keep working out and taking time for myself.  Not only do I feel better physically but emotionally as well. 

While Matt and I cleaned up from dinner tonight, Jamie thoroughly enjoyed a piece of chocolate matzo crunch… I can only imagine the mess he’s going to make next weekend when we give him cake!

What does every 11 month old need?  A new play room of course ;) 

At the entrance to our house we have a space that I believe the builders intended to be used as a formal living room.  When we fist saw the house, it was the neighborhood model so the space was being used as the realtor’s office, complete with cat 5 wiring, a huge map of Redmond, and  “Welcome to the Woodlands Community” painted on the wall.

When we moved in, the space sat empty for months; we didn’t own enough furniture to furnish the space. Then we bought out fabulous Costco Home couch and were able to move our old couch into that space.  Slowly we moved things around until it became as intended - a (never used) formal sitting room.  Since this room is the first space when you enter in the house, it also became our mud room/dumping space.  The living room drove me nuts, always messy with coats, gloves, scarves, leashes, etc. strewn all over the place.  The only one in our family to use the space was Einstein.  It’s where he goes when he wants to get away from us…

In the meantime, Jamie’s toys were taking over our family room. There were overflowing toy baskets, a jumperoo and two different push trucks.  When guests came over, they had no where to sit without tripping over toys and no coffee table to put beverages or snacks on.

Our neighbors put their house on the market a few weeks back - for significantly less than what we paid for ours (two years ago).  What does this have to do with anything? Well, it made us realize that we’re going to be in this house for a LOOOOOOOOOONG time.  If we’re in this house for the long haul then time to make better use of our space.

Our previously unused living room is now Jamie’s play room ~ we are now guaranteed to spend countless hours in there!

I totally didn’t realize just how many toys our kiddo has until I put them all on display.  He’s so lucky!  A BIG thank you to our neighbor Rana who keeps bringing over the toys her children have out grown.

The coat rack is still there, as is Jamie’s stroller, but we’ve regained our family room while giving our son a wonderful carpeted play area. 

It’s hard to believe that in one short month, our little monkey will be a year old!

Since Jamie’s beloved swim class was cancelled for the second week in a row, we decided to give him an extra long bath.   As we’ve mentioned before, the kid LOVES water.  The moment we put him in his tub he starts splashing up a storm, giggling and chasing his duckies.

Tonight, water play was elevated to an all new level with this amazing new trick:

We did not teach him how to do this, he figured it out entirely on his own!

Jamie has AWESOME hair!  Yesterday, as we took part in our monthly Costco run, we were stopped left and right by strangers commenting on his rockin’ mohawk.  Although we encourage his ‘do with a little aquaphor, it truly does stand up on it’s own.  However, his tresses were getting so long that Matt and I were having a difficult time getting moisturizer down to his scaly, dry scalp and we were getting awfully close to needing a swim cap for class.

Today, we ventured over to Brat Pack Hair Salon in Redmond to remedy the situation.  The salon specializes in kids cuts and even provides mani/pedis for little girls, ear piercing, fun styling and kiddie products. There are TVs at every stylist station and baskets of toys all over the place.  The salon doesn’t exactly cater to little boys but then again, I don’t see there being much of a market for a little boys salon…

I must admit, I was not ready for my little man to get shorn.  I love his hair and feared that even the slightest trim would completely change his “look” and the fun personality that goes with.  Crazy, I know; long hair or not, my kid will always be fabulous.  Though I can tell you right now with absolute certainty he will never have a bowl cut or hair so long people confuse him for a girl.  I love the mohawk but sadly, it had to go. 

As soon as we got to Brat Pack, they let Jamie us pick out a video to play on the Mickey Mouse TV and handed him a big basket of toys to play with. Since Jamie doesn’t really watch TV, other than the occasional over the shoulder glance when we have it on in the background, he wasn’t very into the Baby Einstein’s animal DVD Matt picked out for him but the animal sounds were amusing and provided enough distraction from the sound of the clippers.

Jamie  was his usual, calm, fantastic self.  He even let Miss Shelly buzz his neck and trim the hairs on his ear line with electric clippers.  He only fussed a little bit when he got bored of sitting and when she brushed off the little hairs with a big fluffy brush.

Miss Shelly did a wonderful job of keeping him entertained and handing him fresh (i.e. clean, not hairy) toys to chomp on while quickly working her shears.  In under fifteen minutes Jamie went from looking like a baby with overgrown fuzz to a completely styled little boy!

It’s hard to believe that in two short months Jamie will be a year old.  These days, Jamie loves playing with coffee cups.  I suppose it should come to no surprise that our child loves Starbucks cups.  Growing up in a coffee crazed Seattle suburb, there are always coffee cups laying around our house.  Matt has a well documented morning coffee habit and I am a much more functional person if I have a latte in the afternoon.  A few months back, I started ordering an empty espresso cup for Jamie.  He’s so intent on imitating us that it’s impossible to drink my drink without him trying to take the cup out of my hands.

The other afternoon, Matt came back from the office early and surprised me with a latte.  Unfortunately, Jamie was already up from his nap so I was unable to enjoy my coffee without sharing. 

Maybe Starbucks should make kiddie sippy cups, it would make the transition to drinking from a cup easier.

After I finished my afternoon pick-me-up, Jamie used the cup to bang on his music table and practice his cruising. 

He’s starting to pull himself up and we’re working on getting him to start cruising the couch…

Einstein has an affinity for toilet paper rolls and tissues.  We’re fortunate that he doesn’t destroy any paper he can get his paws on; just the above mentioned toilet paper rolls, clean or dirty tissues (I know, gross!), and the tissue the dry cleaners put in our sweaters.

The night I went into labor with Jamie, Einy was in fine form and went to town on some papers he found in the office.

Not to be outdone by the dog, Jamie has also perfected the art of tissue ripping.  Ever since we went to music class earlier this week, I’ve been giving him a tissue box to drum on.  Most of the time, he just hits the box over and over again.  Every now and then, he likes to mix it up by pulling all the tissues out of the box and will then top off his performance by ripping one to shreds.

the poor tissue doesn’t stand a chance

Maybe it’s time to give him a Tupperware to bang on instead.  I don’t think tissues are too good for his already troubled tummy…

It seems like over the last few weeks, Jamie has truly discovered table food and LOVES to eat.  No more mush for him, we must serve him from the “family table”, three times a day with the occasional mid afternoon snack.

We were in LA last weekend for a quick trip down to the sun and it seems like almost all the pictures we took are of Jamie eating.

Mami, Jamie and Great-Grandma Illeene at dinner Friday night.

Before Jamie’s first Brent’s experience with Great-Grandma Lillian

Jamie’s Brent’s Deli experience started out with a few bagel chips… then a taste of pickle, rye bread from Daddy’s sandwich…

Followed by some of Mami’s matzo ball soup ~ carrots, chicken, matzo ball…

Topped off with a little of Grandma Danna’s apple sauce for dessert.

On the flight home, Jamie was a bit of a cranky pants, he missed his nap and wasn’t too thrilled at the idea of sitting in one place for an extended period of time.  We were very fortunate that we were upgraded to first class (thank you Daddy’s Alaska Airlines status). The in-flight snack was Late July Classic Rich Crackers (organic Ritz), white cheddar cheese pieces, salami and Almond Roca (my favorite!).  Jamie ate the entire flight home.  NO JOKE.  I think we went thru at least 4 packets of crackers and 6 pieces of cheese.  I had to sneak my beloved almond roca and we had to pry salami out of Jamie’s hands. Absolutely amazing.

Jamie’s in-flight buffet was set up on the arm rest between our seats. 

Matt and I took turns squatting in the area in front of our seats, in the aisle, and sitting on the arm rest.  All in an attempt to keep the little chazzer happy.

Stay tuned for amazing Jamie and Grace pictures.  Our friend Patti snapped over 150 pictures of the adorable future Trojans…

As promised, here are a few shots of Jamie having fun in the pool.  This week we continued working on getting the kids comfortable in the water and learned two different back float techniques.  Jamie was the only baby in a class of eight who took quickly to floating. As soon as the teacher showed us what to do, we flipped him on his back and he loved it!  Unfortunately, I don’t have any pictures of this since both Matt and I were in the water practicing with him.  Maybe when Bobe Betty comes to visit in a few weeks she’ll take pictures and videos of Jamie in action… For now, here are some pre-class pictures.

Practicing “sit, listen stay” before getting in the water.  Yes, I’m wearing a swim cap – class rules (yuck). Part of what we learn in class is general pool safety, like waiting for permission to get in the water and what to do if your child accidentally falls in.

Goofing off with Daddy while Teacher Abby helped others into the pool.

Jamie had his first swim lesson today!  With the exception of those first few kitchen sink baths, our kid is a HUGE fan of water. 

Tonight we slipped into our suits (gulp) and headed down to Bellevue for the kiddie swim program, WaterBabies.  WaterBabies is a very impressive, well oiled machine.  There are five other kids in our class, including Alli, one of Jamie’s best friends from playgroup, and we already cannot wait to go back next week.

Unfortunately, Matt and I were having so much fun in the pool with Jamie that the only pictures we took were before he got into the water.  Maybe next week we’ll remember to take some pictures of Jamie actually IN the water…

All ready to go in his reusable swimsuit and Hugh Hefner bathrobe.  No disposable swim diapers allowed, those are gross!

Jamie and Alli watching the big kids in the pool from the class before ours. 

So excited, here we go!  Alli was a little hesitant at first but as soon as Jamie splashed everyone and Alli figured out how to splash back, it was all good.  Both had a blast!

This post will be brief since I’m supposed to be napping, not blogging.  Matt graciously took Jamie with him to go see his cousin Heather who is visiting from LA so I can get a little down time and try to sleep off my very painful sore throat before it becomes a full blown cold or flu.

Jamie had a wonderful first Hanukah!  Both sets of grandparents and Aunt Tammy came to visit and share the holidays with us.  Here are the picture highlights…

Hanukah gelt is yummy! 

Don’t worry, we didn’t give him chocolate…just the wrapper.  Jamie loves anything that is shiny or makes crinkle noises

Lighting candles for the first time!

Lighting candles before dinner the fourth night

With Bobe and Zeide with the beautiful wooden menorah they brought Jamie

singing the blessings with Grandma and Aunt Tammy

Grandpa lighting the candles while Grandma and Aunt Tammy entertain Jamie

The day Jamie was born, April 18th 2008, was the latest into the spring it has ever snowed in Seattle.  On his 8th month birthday, December 18th, it started to snow again...and hasn't stopped. I'm not kidding.  There has been measurable snowfall every day for the last seven days and it looks like it's going to keep falling straight thru New Years. Add that to the snow that fell the previous weekend and you can only imagine how white everything is.

This year, we have had ridiculous record-setting snow.  The entire Seattle metropolitan area is completely crippled.  Our infrastructure is not even remotely prepared to handle this much snow. Schools closed for winter break almost a week early, the bus system is running at half capacity and they are urging people to stay home unless they absolutely have to leave the house.  Fortunately, my gas guzzling Jeep Commander handles the snow like a champ, no problem. However, there isn't anywhere to go; most businesses are closed, the roads are a disaster and it's way too cold to go to the dog park with Jamie.  My parents are in town and all we've been able to do so far is make one trip to Fred Meyer, go out for dinner twice and Matt braved Marymoore Park with my dad to get the poor dogs some exercise.

We took these pictures in the park across the street from our house last Thursday, Jamie's eight month birthday.

Einstein LOOOOVES the snow.  We have to give him a warm bath every time he comes in just to melt the snow balls tangled into his fur but totally worth it to see him this happy.

Jamie doesn't quite know what to make of all this white stuff.  We think he likes it but not too sure.  Unfortunately, it's too deep to let him sit or stand in it...

The two dogs made nice just long enough for us to take this picture.  Julia and Einy did not become the fast friends we had hoped they would become.  For the most part, we have to keep them separated, except when playing in the snow.

Since these pictures, we've gotten an additional foot of snow; just imagine how it looks now... I'll try and get outside to take more pictures soon.

We have been going to Evergreen Hospital's Parent-Baby classes (gender correct Mommy & Me) since Jamie was seven weeks old and without a doubt class is one of the highlights of our week.  I admit, it took me longer than it should have to get to that first class but once we went, I was instantly hooked. Parent-Baby class meets once a week for two hours and gives Mommies (and the occasional Daddy) the opportunity to chat with other moms with babies close in age to yours as well as ask any and every question you could ever imagine related to raising an infant in this crazy world we live in.  I have learned more than imaginable and have been saved many a call to the pediatrician's office thanks to this program. I can hands down say that this class has saved my sanity, kept me from sinking into a postpartum funk and probably best of all, started our play group.

Each week, the teachers give a 45 minute to an hour presentation on any of a wide range of topics -  green/safe house cleaning, who you are other than a Mommy, how to make homemade toys out of whatever is in your cupboards, etc. then we have an open forum where we can ask ANYTHING.  One day in the zero to three month class, there was no prescribed topic, the calendar just said Playgroups. When we got there, the teachers told us about the importance of getting out of the house more than once a week (ahem) and lovely stories about the playgroups they have been members of for 10+ years. Then, they handed out clipboards and told us to go socialize.  I signed up for two groups that day, one a general playgroup and the other a group that planned on getting together once a week to go walking.  The walking group never really materialized but the general group has gotten together every week since.

We started as a group of 15 and as time has gone on, for various reasons, we've dwindled down to five families. During the summer, we met at a different park every week, sitting in shade with our kiddos snoozing in their car seats and strollers.  Now that winter is in full swing and the babies are MUCH more mobile, we meet at each other's homes giving the little ones a warm space to roll around and play while we enjoy lunch.  Our first few get together's were a bit awkward with not much more to talk about other than our babies but now, I consider these ladies my closet friends who I can talk to about anything and everything. On occasion, we even get out for a Mommies Night Out.

Today, I finally got around to taking a picture of the group, it only took six and a half months... It's a shame we never took a group shot during those early meetings, they've all changed so much.  Here is our fabulous play group sitting in front of Carrie and Allison's Christmas tree. 

*Katelyn is Jamie A's big sister, she kindly puts up with all our crazy babies.

I promise I'll post about our Thanksgiving trip to Mexico City soon...I'm still trying to make my way thru all our pictures.

Jamie sat up on his own for the first time back in September but is just now sitting up long enough that we can snap a picture of him.

However, he doesn't get much practice at sitting because he is so intent on standing up.  We spend HOURS every day with him leaning against his music table, bouncing in his bouncer or playing in the exersaucer.  This child is going to walk before he bothers to properly sit up, crawl or roll over.

Usually, this blog is all about Jamie but with last night's historic election, I'm going to have to digress for one posting.

While Jamie and I watched the election results from the comfort of our couch, Matt was in New York on business.  Although his meeting was technically in New Jersey, he traveled into "the City" to Times Square to watch everything unfold on CNN and ABC's jumbo screens.  Because the world is so incredibly small, he ran into three of our Los Angeles friends among the crowd of thousands.  Being the super tech nerd that my darling hubby is, he sent us lots of cell phone pictures throughout the night.

Matt and Todd Ulise in front of CNN Headquarters.

The CNN jumbotron announcing the election results.

Matt standing amid the chaos, notice the billboard of my high school classmate, James Franco, behind him.

Matt runs into people we know everywhere he goes.  Last night, he ran into my friends from freshman year at USC, Rosalie and Jesse who moved to New York after graduation.  So exciting!

by Sharon

In keeping with great fall traditions, we took Jamie to a pumpkin patch earlier today with our friends Lauren, Neal and Olivia Manegold. 

The Pacific Northwest is basically one big suburban farm so we have lots of pumpkin patches to pick from. That said, we live less than two miles from The South 47 Farm so we decided to go there instead of one of the bigger fancy farms.  Unfortunately, we weren't the only ones who went to South 47 so the pickings were pretty slim.

Olivia snoozed most of the time we were there and Jamie was so distracted looking around that we didn't get a single picture of them looking at the camera...except in the car.

Check out the gorgeous blue October sky!

Jamie's way of picking a pumpkin is by sitting on it...this one passed the test.

Next year, we'll actually go thru the corn maze.

The Manegolds

Our attempt at a family picture.

Sitting next to his pumpkin choice on the hay stacks.  Time to go home...

By Sharon

As cliche as it sounds, it is amazing how quickly the last six months have passed.  While there are days that feel like an eternity, it is hard to believe that six short months ago we were a twosome, not a family of three.

Yesterday, we took Jamie to the pediatrician for his half birthday check-up.  We were excited to learn that he has nearly tripled his birth weight and is thriving to such an extent that we no longer need to track his adjusted age statistics.

At six months, Jamie you weigh 14 pounds, 9 ounces and are nearly 27 inches long.

You can sit on your own for a few seconds and roll over, both front to back and back to front, but would MUCH rather stand.

You have a fantastic temperament and are extremely smiley and flirty.

You love your puppy Einstein and watch him closely as he runs around the house. If he comes near you, you reach out your hand out for him to lick.

So far, you hate bananas, like avocado and love to eat Daddy's nose :-)

You are the light of your Mami and Daddy's life.

By Sharon

Since my last post, there have been lots of "firsts":

Jamie, Einstein and I stayed home without Bobe or Grandma visiting while Matt went on a business trip.

Jamie stayed with a non-family babysitter while Matt and I attended Rory and Briton's wedding.

I took Jamie down to California without Matt.

But the biggest first, was by far this morning - we gave Jamie his first taste of "solid" food.

After over 1,200 breast feeding sessions (7 to 8 times a day over 5 months, 3 weeks!), time to mix it up a little bit. 

For the last few weeks Jamie has been increasingly grabbing at our food and drinks, getting upset when we eat in front of him, simulating chewing, and watching our every bite like a hawk. 

Last Friday, we began putting him in his high chair while we eat dinner.  This helped a little but it is definitely solids time.

Jamie was pretty ambivalent to towards the rice cereal, its basically textured breast milk after all, but avocado and banana will I'm sure make for more fun in the coming days.